ELECTION 2012

Reagan's right about GOP race

Exclusive: Christine O'Donnell offers her take on presidential front-runners

Published: 10/05/2011 at 1:59 PM

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Christine O’Donnell

When Gov. Christie announced he s not running for president, Michael Reagan tweeted to Republican voters, “Now quit your whining and choose your candidate!” Well said, Mr. Reagan. Recently, Florida and South Carolina moved up their primaries, causing a swirl of speculation that the GOP will try to do what the Democrats did in 2008 – win by having two front-runners duke it out until the very last minute while the opposing party’s candidate is overshadowed waiting in the wings.

Not a good idea! In 2012, this would be political suicide for the GOP. Unlike now, in 2008 the incumbent president was not the opposing party’s candidate. If GOP front-runners continue the bloodbath until the very end, Obama will remain president. He will continue to campaign from the Oval Office and get away with unpresidential wisecracks such as calling Republicans the evil enemy. The political spotlight should be fixed on Obama’s horrible record and lack of leadership. While liberals resort to the politics of personal destruction and deception, we have the truth on our side. We need to focus our winning message on independent voters. We don’t need to abandon or compromise our message to win independent voters; we need to reframe it in a way that will resonate and connect with them.

For that reason, the Republican Party needs to unite around a front-runner as soon as possible and stop the destructive infighting. Believe me; I know a thing or two about the long-term damage caused by Republican cannibalism. In my 2010 U.S. Senate race, I was ahead of my Democratic opponent in the polls until the damage caused by my own party’s attack went beyond repair.

Already, liberal hacks are cheering as the GOP bad-mouthing drags down its own front-runners. We, as the grass roots, need to quickly unite behind a candidate so we can direct our resources to the real goal: making Barack Hussein Obama a one-term president.

We’ve got a lot of work to do, and the sooner we pick a candidate, the sooner we can get to work! Here are my thoughts:

Gov. Mitt Romney

Gov. Romney stands strong and solid,, steadfast and unmovable. This is a great thing. With so much fear, economic uncertainty and instability in our world, Americans are craving unwavering strength. In a purely visceral way, Romney’s calm, collected, unshakable image is appealing, especially when compared to our current Follower in Chief’s weak, erratic leadership.

Gov. Romney is the only GOP candidate consistently neck and neck (and sometimes beating) Obama in a head-to-head matchup. Not only can Romney beat Obama on Election Day, he has the executive experience in both the private sector and as an elected official that Obama lacked on the day he took office. Gov. Romney will be ready to govern and lead the minute he is sworn in. He is strong on (almost) all the issues vital to getting our country back on track. When a candidate changes his position, it is not flip-flopping as long as there has been consistency since the change. This is true for Mitt Romney.

Still, many are concerned that Gov. Romney’s Massachusetts health-care law will impede his own commitment to fully stop Obamacare in its tracks. In Romney’s defense, his plan became a state law. Therefore, not only is it easier to undo, the 10th Amendment grants Massachusetts the constitutional right to pass such laws. If Massachusetts voters don’t like its impact, unlike a federal bill, it can be reversed with minimal damage. However, if Obamacare is full actualized, it will be the undoing of our nation. Obamacare will cement our country’s rapid decline into a socialized economy.

While Gov. Romney has declared that, as president, he will grant states an opt-out of this broken law, is an opt-out enough to stop Obamacare from completely destroying our country? What many Republican voters want to see from Romney is a stronger commitment to kill this bill accompanied by a plan that does more than grant a state-opt out. If that happens, we just might have our nominee!

Gov. Rick Perry

Because of his own strong faith, Gov. Perry has been the favored candidate of so many faith-based Republican voters. I like that. He is not afraid to take on the Republican establishment. I like that, too. He’s outspoken about tax relief, spending cuts and what is really necessary to bring jobs back to our country. He’s the current governor of one of the only states thriving in this crippled economy. While his critics claim he’s taking credit for what private business has done to make the Texas economy strong, those same critics would be the first to blame him if the Texas economy were tanking.

My concerns with Gov. Perry are twofold – his now infamous Gardasil executive order and his support for instate tuition for illegal aliens. Perhaps on the latter issue, I’m somewhat subjective. My political opponents chastised me because I took 10 years to pay off my college tuition. (I’m proud of that!) Is it “heartless” to suggest illegal aliens go to a less expensive community college, as so many Americans choose to do, to make college affordable? Now, on the flip side, instate tuition for illegal aliens could be the issue that wins Perry much-needed independent voters in the general election.

Back in 2007, I was stunned when Gov. Perry signed that Gardasil executive order (and now in 2011, I am even more stunned that this somehow backfired on Rep. Bachmann!). For me, it is not so much the merits of Gardasil, but rather Perry’s reckless disregard for parental and women’s rights that makes me wonder if he doesn’t understand the proper role of government or if he simply chose to ignore it. And now that this is coming back to bite him, his “oops” explanation offers no consolation.

If Perry wins the nomination, I will put these two concerns aside and campaign as hard as I can for him because they pale in comparison to the trillions (literally) of concerns I have with President Obama. In the meantime, I’m still looking.

Herman Cain

There is little not to absolutely love about Herman Cain. He’s holding Obama accountable for his disastrous record, and furthermore, he’s holding Democratic voters accountable to their blind support of this administration’s failed policies. He was one of the first presidential candidates (including our president) to lay out a plan to turn around America’s economy. He has a proven track record of reviving economically unstable corporations, yet will this translate into political capital? Despite the fact that when Cain was exploring his first presidential bid Barack Obama was a community organizer newly elected to the Illinois State Senate, will voters have a knee-jerk reaction to Cain’s lack of experience as an elected official?

And although I love the fact that Cain delivered a bold vision, I’m not sure about his 9-9-9 Plan. For example, I’m concerned about the impact of a national consumption tax on my home state’s local economy.

If Cain does not win the nomination, whether the next occupant of the Oval Office bears an “R” or a “D” next to his name, he certainly holds a place in the administration. Secretary of treasury? Federal Reserve chairman?

Rep. Michele Bachmann

Rep. Bachmann is holding our boys in the GOP accountable to our party’s platform. As long as she remains in the race, important issues remain in the spotlight.

Gingrich, Huntsman, Santorum and Paul are not considered front-runners because they have not broken 15 percent in national polls (at least to my knowledge). While polls are good indicators, they are not crystal balls that predict an unmovable outcome. The right (or wrong) actions can change polls. If one of these guys is your favorite, get to work! Move them up in the polls! Donate to their campaigns!

Finally, if your candidate does not win the GOP nomination, please, please, please do not support a third-party candidate. Remember, in 1992, a majority of the voters did not vote for Bill Clinton. A majority voted against him. Yet since there were three candidates, the nay votes were split and ushered in eight years of a Clinton administration. Is a protest vote really worth four more years of an Obama administration?

We in the conservative movement don’t always agree, but we unanimously agree that Barack Obama’s destructive agenda must be stopped. We need to put our differences aside and unite around one candidate who can do that. President Obama is vulnerable. He is tanking in the polls. There is a very real chance he will be a one-term president, but it is entirely up to us in this middle-class movement to make that happen.